This much I know: Shirley Temple Bar

I’ve always been a bit of a show-off.

My dad comes from a big family and, maybe because they had to fight for attention, there are a lot of entertainers among them. Family gatherings were always like auditions for The X Factor so I think a bit of that rubbed off.

Shirley Temple Bar was a character I created for the Alternative Miss Ireland in 1997. It was all a big laugh and I certainly didn’t expect to win. I most definitely didn’t think that Shirley Temple Bar would become such a big part of my life.

Soon after winning the AMI, I was offered a gig in The George. Fifteen years later, I am still at it. I can’t explain why, other than I have a lot of fun. It’s not just bingo. And it’s not just me. There are a whole bunch of people who come together to have a good time.

I’ve done lots of things in my life, from managing TV advertising campaigns for multinational companies to producing business conferences. Most of the jobs I have done have been fun.

I don’t see myself as a public figure. I’m not interested in celebrity or being seen in all the “right places”. I rarely go to red carpet events as it feels so false — unless it genuinely feels like a social occasion or if I am up for an Oscar again.

I was born in the USA. One of my earliest memories is seeing cows in the Irish countryside on my way to my grandparents’ home in Clonmel.

After school, I did a degree in Business Studies at DCU. I thought I wanted to be an accountant. I put that down to being a repressed homosexual! I quickly switched to international marketing. That’s a lot more suitable for someone who talks a lot of nonsense.

I don’t believe in fate. I think it’s a very depressing thought. The idea that everything is pre-ordained makes every success and every failure in life entirely meaningless. The most powerful thing about life is our choices and their consequences.

Work is a pleasure for me and, as result, the lines between personal and work are very blurred. I don’t have a set schedule.

Socrates never spoke to me personally but his statement that “An unexamined life is not worth living” really resonates with me. If you pay attention to yourself and the life you are leading, it helps you to appreciate it more.

My parents are great people, who taught me so much about the important things in life. They are both deaf, never sold themselves short and achieved so many great things in their lives. They’re still doing things that other people their age wouldn’t dare to.

I have only recently become health conscious. I go to the gym every weekday and try to eat healthily. I think it’s because I have realised I am aging and this old body needs to be maintained. I was never very sporty when I was younger so I have surprised myself by becoming addicted to my training regime.

I don’t believe in God. When I was younger I tried to but it just doesn’t make any sense to me. I’d love it if we could all come to the realisation that organised religion has been a bad thing for us all. I’d never try to ban religions but I wish they did not exist.

If I wasn’t doing what I am doing now, I’d want a job in graphic design. I went back to college to study for a Masters in Digital Media Technology. I wrote and designed the computer programme I use in The George to play bingo.! I designed my website and most of my posters.

Meeting your heroes can be a letdown. But, if I could invite any three people to a dinner party, I’d choose Oscar Wilde, Madonna and Dorothy Parker. Can you imagine how bitchy that party would be?!

My worst habit is that I am always late. Actually I am late right now...

On Sunday Jun 24, join Queen of Bingo, Shirley Temple Bar as she celebrates 15 years of her legendary Sunday night bingo show live at The George, Dublin. www.thegeorge.ie